Israeli Occupiers Carried Out 1,659 Attacks on Palestine During May
The Chairman of the Commission against the Wall and Settlements, Minister Mu’ayyad Sha’ban, stated that Israeli occupying forces and settlers carried out a total of 1,659 attacks during May, continuing what he described as systematic terror against the Palestinian people, their land, and their property.
In the commission’s monthly report released on Saturday (6/6), Sha’ban noted that occupying troops conducted 1,108 attacks, while settlers carried out 551 attacks. These attacks were primarily concentrated in the Governorates of Hebron and Ramallah and al-Bireh, which each recorded 319 attacks. This was followed by the Nablus Governorate with 301 attacks and Bethlehem with 212 attacks.
Sha’ban highlighted that these attacks encompassed direct physical violence, the uprooting of trees, the burning of agricultural land, the prevention of farmers’ access to their lands, the seizure of property, and the destruction of homes and agricultural buildings. He pointed out that these practices occurred alongside the closure of vast areas of Palestinian land under the pretext of security, while simultaneously providing protection and support to settlers to enable the expansion of their presence in these territories.
The West Bank, a landmass in the Middle East located west of the Jordan River, covers over 5,000 square kilometres and is inhabited by approximately 3.3 million Palestinians and around 700,000 Israeli settlers. Under the Oslo Accords, the West Bank is divided into three administrative zones: Area A (18%), covering major Palestinian urban centres; Area B (21-22%), comprising hundreds of villages; and Area C (60%), the largest zone, which contains Israeli settlements, main roads, closed military zones, and fertile agricultural lands.
Reports indicate that settlers also attacked residents and property in the Al-Khalleh area on the outskirts of Mount Sabih. Sha’ban emphasised that the international community must address these issues, noting that Israeli settlers are launching systematic attacks against Palestinian herders in the West Bank, triggering food crises and the forced displacement of local communities. He further warned that Israel is expanding settlements and fragmenting the rights of the Palestinian people.